DUEL

Malfoy strutted over, smirking. Behind him walked two Slytherin girls who each reminded me of a picture I had seen in Holidays with Hags. Millicent Bulstrode was large and square and her heavy jaw jutted aggressively. Hermione gave her a weak smile that she did not return. Pansy Parkinson was tall and big-boned, and her sharp face was just as aggressive and scary as Millicent's.

"Face your partners!" called Lockhart, bock on the platform. "And bow!"

I and Malfoy barely inclined our heads, not taking our eyes off each other.

"Wands at the ready!" shouted Lockhart. "When I count to three, cast your charms to disarm your opponents – only to disarm them – we don't want any accidents – one…two…three –"

" I was already aware that Malfoy had no intention of following the rule and playing fair but I could not out him just yet and as expected Malfoy had already started on "two": His spell hit me so hard he felt as though I had been hit over the head with a saucepan. Even though I was tougher this time around it was still painful taking a spell directly on the body without any protection. I stumbled, but everything still seemed to be working, and wasting no more time, I pointed his wand straight at Malfoy and shouted, "Rictusempra".

A jet of silver light hit Malfoy in the stomach and he doubled up, wheezing.

"I said disarm only!" Lockhart shouted in alarm over the heads of the battling crowd, as Malfoy sank to his knees; I had hit him with a Tickling Charm, and he could barely move for laughing. I hung back; with a vague feeling it would be no use to bewitch Malfoy while he was on the floor as he would be attacking sneakily again. Gasping for breath, Malfoy pointed his wand at my knees, choked, "Tarantallegra!" and the next second my legs began to jerk around out of control in a kind of quickstep.

"Stop! Stop!" screamed Lockhart, but Snape took charge.

"Finite Incantatem!" he shouted; my feet stopped dancing, Malfoy stopped laughing, and they were able to look up.

A haze of greenish smoke was hovering over the scene. Both Ron and Justin were lying on the floor, panting; Neville was holding up an ashen-faced Seamus, apologizing for whatever he had done; but Hermione and Millicent Bulstrode were still moving; Millicent had Hermione in a headlock and Hermione was whimpering in pain; both their wands lay forgotten on the floor. Harry leapt forward and pulled Millicent off. It was difficult: She was a lot bigger than he was. Zoe was shot backwards by a laughing Pansy and had landed hard on the floor with a yelp.

"Dear, dear," said Lockhart, skittering through the crowd, looking at the aftermath of the duels. "Up you go, Macmillan…. Careful there, Miss Fawcett…. Pinch it hard, it's stop bleeding in a second, Boot –

"I think I'd better teach you how to block unfriendly spells," said Lockhart, standing flustered in the midst of the hall. He glanced at Snape, whose black eyes glinted, and looked quickly away. "Let's have a volunteer pair – Ron and Finch-Fletchley, how about you –"

"A bad idea, Professor Lockhart," said Snape, gliding over like a large and malevolent bat. "Weasley causes devastation with the simplest spells. We'll be sending what's left of Finch-Fletchley up to the hospital wing in a matchbox." Neville's round, pink face went pinker. "How about Malfoy and Potter?" said Snape with a twisted smile.

"Excellent idea!" said Lockhart, gesturing Harry and Malfoy into the middle of the hall as the crowd backed away to give them room.

"Now, Harry," said Lockhart. "When Draco points his wand at you, you do this."

He raised his own wand, attempted a complicated sort of wiggling action, and dropped it. Snape smirked as Lockhart quickly picked it up, saying, "Whoops – my wand is a little overexcited –"

Snape moved closer to Malfoy, bent down, and whispered something in his ear. Malfoy smirked, too. Harry looked up nervously at Lockhart and said, "Professor, could you show me that blocking thing again?"

"Scared?" muttered Malfoy, so that Lockhart couldn't hear him.

Instead of replying in a childish manner I got in position. Seeing this Malfoy got irked and he too assumed his position.

Lockhart cuffed me merrily on the shoulder. "Just do what I did, Harry!"

"What, drop my wand?"

But Lockhart wasn't listening.

Three – two – one – go!" he shouted.

Malfoy raised his wand quickly and bellowed, "Serpensortia!"

The end of his wand exploded. I watched, in anticipation, as a long black snake shot out of it, fell heavily onto the floor between them, and raised itself, ready to strike. There were screams as the crowd backed swiftly away, clearing the floor.

"Don't move, Potter," said Snape lazily, clearly enjoying the sight of me standing motionless, eye to eye with the angry snake. "I'll get rid of it…."

"Allow me!" shouted Lockhart. He brandished his wand at the snake and there was a loud bang; the snake, instead of vanishing, flew ten feet into the air and fell back to the floor with a loud smack. Enraged, hissing furiously, it slithered straight toward a petrified Zoe and raised itself again, fangs exposed, poised to strike.

I walked forward as if my legs were carrying me forward as though I was on casters and I had shouted stupidly at the snake. The first time around I had spoken to him without knowing and the aftermath was not under my control, but this time I around I instructed it to frighten and not harm the boy to his right. The snake then left Zoe and started slithering toward Justin Finch-Fletchley.

I once again pretended to shout loudly but gave no further instructions and the snake slumped to the floor, docile as a thick, black garden hose, its eyes now on me. I had no fear of the snake. I knew the snake wouldn't attack anyone now, though I knew it, I wasn't going to run around explaining it to everyone.

I looked up at Justin, grinning, only I knew that I had meant to frighten him but I could not display it and thus pretended to be shocked when I saw him angry and scared.

"What do you think you're playing at?" he shouted, I sure was not going to explain myself and so I along with everyone watched as Justin had turned and stormed out of the hall.